Monday, 18 January 2010

Focusing

I have decided that I need more discipline & with that in mind I am going to start & finish at least 1 item per day,be it pendant,cufflinks,earrings,small box,etc.

My usual script is to work on a large number of items at once,drill a hole in a pendant then do the metalwork on a set of cufflinks then apply finish to a box,I am usually actively working on more than 30 things within a 1 week period.Because of this fact a large number of items tend to take months,even years to complete (not very lucrative!!!)as I am always starting new & exciting projects & "forgetting" about older ones.I'll still be doing this,I enjoy flitting from project to project but I need to have "production".

I am also going to make at least 1 mushroom a day to keep my skills honed & also to sell.I haven't sold my wooden mushrooms for years,but if I am going to be making them for practise it won't be long before our house is overrun with the little,pointy blighters.

Starting price will be £2 for a 40mm or 1.5 inch tall version & will increase in price depending on which wood I use & what size they are.Not more than £5 or much bigger than 70mm 0r 2.75 inches tall.

3 comments:

Adrian, extensive research proves that multi-tasking is disastrous for productivity. Many reasons, including:

1. set-up and set-down times eat consume much of the available time2. when you get to an obstacle, easier to move to another task (project) than overcome the obstacle (I worked with a product development group of around 20 that had produced nothing for over a year, until multi-tasking was banned - the people were not to be given another task until they had finished the one they were allocated)3. multi-taskers are always busy, work long hours, are tired, and not accountable

Hi Peter,Thanks for the input.I am very aware of the pitfalls associated with multitasking,hence my resolution to focus at least some of the time,I hope that this will germinate into a more disciplined mode of operation.I do feel however that the way I work does have some creative,if not productive,benefits over a more linear form of manufacture.A lot of the time when I'm halfway through making something the product itself suggests variations that may be developed or I'll realise that I have options when it comes to fabrication or material choice & it's generally speaking this realisation that causes me to wander from a specific task.Some of my best work is achieved this way.I tend not to sketch or draw so a lot of my research & development is actually on the job,I just need to tip the scales more towards the production side rather than the R&D side.But yes,I do work long hours & I'm not the most accountable person on the planet but I thoroughly enjoy the former & am working on the lattercheers mateBlack (nobody calls me Adrian except family & healthcare profesionals)